Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Uchiha Kazuto! Get out here!"

Uchiha Shisui charged to the base of the Hokage's Office, gritting his teeth, his face twisted with rage as he shouted.

"Halt!"

The Military Police Force ninja patrolling below the Hokage's Office raised his baton, blocking Shisui's advance.

They all knew Uchiha Shisui, knew he was a genius of the Uchiha Clan, but so what? That was in the past.

"Move aside. I want to see Uchiha Kazuto!"

Shisui glared at the Military Police ninja. One of them was even a member of the Uchiha Clan, someone who had once worshipped him. But now, Shisui saw no trace of that admiration in the man's eyes.

"Shut your mouth. Who do you think you are? The Lord Hokage's name is not something you can just throw around. Uchiha Shisui, if you dare speak the Lord Hokage's name directly again, don't blame us for being rude!"

The men surrounded Shisui, gripping their batons and tapping them slowly against their other palms, looking ready to strike at any moment.

"You..."

Shisui took a step back, inhaling deeply. He couldn't stoop to their level.

"Please report to the Lord Hokage that Uchiha Shisui requests an audience!"

"Stay here. We'll inform the Lord Hokage. But whether he'll see you..."

The Military Police ninja exchanged glances, then the leading Captain stepped forward, said this to Shisui, and walked into the Hokage's Office.

The others kept a wary eye on Shisui, preventing him from doing anything out of line.

This was no longer Hiruzen Sarutobi's era. Uchiha Kazuto was no longer the former Captain of the Military Police Force. But Shisui hadn't accepted reality. In his eyes, Uchiha Kazuto still wasn't the Hokage he recognized.

If Hiruzen Sarutobi were in that office now, Shisui would never dare to be so reckless.

Unfortunately, Konoha's current situation was beyond Shisui's control—or even his comprehension. The Uchiha Clan didn't stand with him. The village didn't stand with him. Aside from the dead Hiruzen Sarutobi, no one stood behind him.

He was the heretic.

Yet, even now, Shisui still hadn't woken up. He remained lost in the Konoha of the past.

Inside the Hokage's Office.

Uchiha Kazuto gazed at the Hokage Rock outside.

"This thing is a bit in the way. Tear it down!"

Kazuto thought.

Thump! Thump! Thump!!!

A knock sounded.

"Lord Hokage, Uchiha Shisui wishes to see you!"

The respectful Military Police ninja spoke from outside.

"Uchiha Shisui? Who's that?"

Kazuto paused, then remembered. Ah, right, Uchiha Shisui—the one who had provided him with a pair of Mangekyo Sharingan. Without those eyes, killing Uchiha Itachi wouldn't have been so easy.

When he killed Hiruzen Sarutobi, Kazuto recalled that Shisui was still blind, so he had someone gouge out Sarutobi's eyes and give them to Shisui.

But honestly, he hadn't given much thought to that eyeless fool.

"Let him in."

Kazuto nodded.

Soon, Shisui was brought in like a prisoner.

"Uchiha Kazuto, do you even know what you've done?! How dare you kill the Lord Hokage!!!"

Shisui's face twisted with rage and grief, his fists clenched so tight they trembled.

Bang!

The next moment, a baton cracked against his skull.

Bang!

A kick bent his knee, forcing him to the ground. The ninja behind him rushed forward, pinning Shisui down.

"Bastard, who gave you the nerve to disrespect the great Lord Hokage like that? Hiruzen Sarutobi was a beast—dead and gone. And you're sympathizing with him?!"

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Six strikes a second. Unimaginable pain surged through him, even robbing Shisui of thought.

"Ahhh!!!"

Shisui howled in agony. He never expected it to hurt this much. This was a pain he had never experienced. He couldn't understand it—that baton couldn't even break through his defenses, so why did it hurt so badly? It was inhumane! Unscientific!

"Uchiha Shisui, what are you saying? What did I do to earn such disrespect? You won't even call me Lord Hokage?"

Kazuto frowned, walked over, looked down at Shisui, and asked with feigned confusion.

"Lord Hokage? Hahaha! What Lord Hokage! I never should have trusted you! You used Kotoamatsukami to twist the Lord Hokage's will and steal his position, didn't you?! Uchiha Kazuto, do you have any idea what you're doing?! Your actions will drag the village and the clan into what kind of mess?! You'll drag the clan straight to hell! You're provoking conflict between the village and the clan!!! You'll regret this!!!"

Shisui stared up at Kazuto with Hiruzen Sarutobi's eyes, his face twisted, roaring in fury as if the dead Sarutobi were his own father.

"Ha? Hahaha, what are you talking about? Clan? Village? Situation? Hahaha!!!"

After hearing Uchiha Shisui's words, Uchiha Kazuto's face twisted into an expression of incomprehension, then he burst out laughing, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world. He felt this was the funniest thing he had heard in a long time.

"What are you laughing at, Uchiha Kazuto? It's not too late for you to turn back now. As long as you give up the position of Hokage and go admit your mistakes, everything can still be salvaged!"

Uchiha Shisui still hadn't realized it, hadn't grasped what the current situation in Konoha truly was. After all, he had been staying within the clan compound all this time, with little understanding of what was happening in the village. He still believed the village was the same as it had always been.

"What am I laughing at? Uchiha Shisui, I am the clan head of the Uchiha Clan, and I am also the Hokage of Konoha. Your Hiruzen Sarutobi, that traitor, is already dead! Do you even understand the current situation? Stirring up conflict between the clan and the village? How could I stir it up? As the clan head, am I supposed to point the blade at my own family? Uchiha Shisui, do you even understand what's going on right now?!"

Uchiha Kazuto reached out and patted Uchiha Shisui on the head.

"The village now is not the village of the past anymore! Uchiha Shisui, you idiot!"

"How..."